So I have once again found a great craft appropriate for those with the nerdy (or gamer) slant. This case holds a Nintendo DS system and, as you can see from the picture, can still be plugged in. This would also be a great homeschooling project. Rosered over at Crafters has more pictures, materials list and detailed instructions so you can also make one!

(HT: BoingBoing)

7th Heaven had an interesting plot this week. One of the story lines was the 2 little boys’ teacher hit on Reverend Camden. Now in a previous episode she made it clear she was interested in him but this week she propositioned him. Right in school(but not in front of everyone). Reverend Camden went to the principal, who basically laughed him off, and asked for the kids to be transferred. After he had been humiliated by the principal, who told him it was all in his mind, he went to the hospital (and the show continued on). Then he returned after school got out and when all the teachers were together. He talked about how great and under paid most teachers are but that there are some corrupt teacher. This is how he told them he was pulling the boys out of the school.

I am outta here, I am outta of this wacky world of education where the lousy, immoral teachers are protected at the expense of all the other teachers. I am not waiting days or weeks or months to find the right teacher for my sons. Life is short and education is important. And to the rest of you, thank you, thank you for everything you do for the students in your classrooms everyday.

The reality is this is how I and many home schoolers feel. Most teachers are well meaning, sweet people. The immoral teachers, corrupt union system and a misguided educational system is the real reason many of us pull our kids out. Can we work out some of the kink by changing teachers, demanding specialization (either special ed or gifted ed) and trying to deal with our kids getting picked on? Sure, but by then it has been weeks, months or years and our children have missed out. Some of us aren’t willing to take that risk with our kids and their education. So we homeschool but, and I want this to be clear, I do not think most teachers are bad. As a matter of fact, I think they can be pretty great!

So I was over reading Michael Medved at Townhall on this new star studded (RED) Campaign. Here is the jist.

The concept behind this new effort, launched by rock star/activist Bono and Schwarzenegger brother-in-law Bobby Shriver, is to get major companies (including The Gap, Motorola, American Express, and more) to make special products available with the (RED) designation (for some reason the word always appears in parentheses in its official deployments. The corporations then devote advertising resources to make the specially branded (RED) merchandise look stylish, desirable, hip, and socially conscious. They also pledge a portion of their profits from sale of these products to the relief of African AIDS patients.

Now you notice that the pledge is only for a portion of the profits or of the increased prices. Here are some examples:

For instance, Gap jeans normally priced at just under $50 are now sold as signature (RED) pants for $198. The Gap promises to donate 50% of their proceeds to AIDS relief – so that still means that the company is taking an extra $50 bucks (not for charity, just for profit) from gullible people who choose to buy the jeans. A Gap long-sleeved t-shirt that last week cost $14.50, now goes for $45…. Meaning that the company still gets an extra $8 of your money on an absurdly over-priced piece of cloth, even after giving their share to charity.

So is this the great plan? I agree with Medved that you should buy the normal cheap stuff and donate the difference. But then people won’t “know” that you donated. But isn’t that the point of charity? To do something for selfless reasons and not for a status symbol? And, is it just me or are these companies just appling rapacious tactics in an already tragic situation? I have half a mind to avoid these companies all together (if I were a boycotter to being with). How about just donating the money to the cause, be you company or individual? I think the idea of collecting money to go straight to the treament of AIDS is a noble idea but the implementation can bring less than favorable results.

Nerd Family will be hosting the Carnival of Pregnancy this Friday. So I am calling for entries! Please go over to BlogCarnival and submit your articles. You just click submit to this carnival and fill out the form!

I just finished reading a post by Steven Waldman over at Huffington Post, The Church-State Divide: Religious Folks Have to Choose, and I am a little frustrated. HE begins by discussing a de-Goding of Christmas.

Hmmm. Maybe the conservative Christians really are right about secularism run amok, I thought. And what about all those stories about kids being told not to read the bible in cafeterias?

So I thought great but then he went on to talk about all of the breaks that religious institutions receive, according to a New York Times article. Waldman said that the exceptions shown to religious group didn’t bother him.

But at a minimum, supporters of religion having a special place can’t have it both ways: we cant take special tax breaks, zoning rules and exemptions and then claim we’re discriminated against. Religious folks will have to choose between the tax breaks and the persecution complex.

This is what I find frustrating. Giving my church freedoms isn’t the same as giving it to me. The Bill of Rights were not rights for institutions but individuals. Why can’t I have freedom of speech that includes the name of God? The reason groups like the Christian Coalition exist is to look at our personal rights more than the church buildings. The lawsuits that have had to be filed (and won years ago) to get Christian student groups in schools are the type of battles Christians are really talking about when it comes to secularism. People on the left need not be so obtuse as to see the issue we are really discussing. It is the kid’s Christmas Program…

I have been seeing articles on David Kuo’s new book, Tempting Faith, and other articles on Tucker Carlson’s statement, elites in the Republican Party have pure contempt for the evangelicals. My response to all of the “revelations”? Duh! The Republican party isn’t actually Christian. Are they more Christian than the Democrats? Of course, but Christian doctrine isn’t the total driving force behind the party’s actions. Do I think that Dobson, the Christian Coalition and all other Christian groups are naive enough to blindly trust the party. I hope not. If they did, why wouldn’t their groups just be part of the party? All political party’s play political games. Of course we are a pain to the Republican elite. The Republican elite are interested in the Republicans winning above all else. It is understandable that they cater to the Christian right, we are what has placed them in power, but they resent that a little. Did these articles tell me things I liked? No. Were they suprises? No. Will they change how or if I vote? Never, I know what the other side holds is more than a little resentment. The Democrats will implement more anti-family measures and spend more tax money than any group of nonChristian Republicans ever will.

It is probably not a shock to anyone that I like the show Numb3rs (that is when SciFi isn’t showing Stargate SG1 or Atlantis;). While the story lines are a little far fetched, I enjoy seeing math getting so much play. Well, there are now actually free math lessons that correlate with each episode. I don’t know at what age you all allow your kids to watch the show (mine are way to young) but the lessons seem to be in the algebra, statistics, and real world (like balancing a checkbook) arenas.

(HT: Mala on Homeschooling Mensans Yahoo Group)

I was reading this interesting article at Gates of Vienna about the US Department of the Interior blocking conservative blogs from their network. But they are not blocking liberal blogs. This is crazy. I totally understand an employer blocking all major blog domains (blogspot, typepad, etc) but to only block some. That is a mistake and I am curious if it will be a lawsuit also. Who actually makes this call to begin with? It can’t be anyone as high up as the Secretary but this is definately above the tech guy’s pay grade. This is one of the many reasons Conservative Republicans back small government;).

This is why I watch Project Runway. I was watching the reunion show (in prep for the finale) and they discussed Tim Gunn’s vocabulary. Here are some of the words the contestants were amazed by:
Mitigating
Consternation
Caucus
Circuitous
Egregious

Here’s my secret: This is one of the reasons I love this show. It is bright and witty. It doesn’t insult my intelligence and actually assumes I have some.

And yes, I have been known to use all of these words.

Supposedly this was made for the GOP for the 2006 elections by Hollywood producer/directo David Zucker but I have no confirmation. I found this hilarious, scary and oh so true.

(HT: AllahPundit)